Syria’s new post-Assad parliament names a diverse group of women lawmakers, though women remain a minority in the legislature. Multiple outlets report that 22 women hold 207 current seats, accounting for just over 10 percent of parliament, a proportion described as similar to the previous assembly during Bashar al-Assad’s rule. The new cohort includes a well-known actress and a Christian engineer, alongside a Kurdish leader. The list also features the widow of a hardline Islamist commander, reflecting the varied backgrounds of some appointees.
NDTV adds that President Ahmed al-Sharaa appoints 15 of the women MPs, and suggests the appointments are intended to project inclusivity amid criticism that women and minorities have been under-represented in Syria’s post-war transition. Al-Monitor frames the women’s prominence as stemming more from their diversity than from a large increase in their overall number.
The appointments come after the Assad era ended following the 2024 fall of Bashar al-Assad to an Islamist alliance, marking a shift in Syria’s political landscape and institutions.
